[One Thousand Characters a Day] Work Life Is the Ultimate Practice <4>

Editor's NoteEveryone has different ways of controlling their emotions. Some start controlling their emotions due to a strong sense of responsibility, while others endure the moment when problems arise but release their feelings later through hobbies or personal relationships. In the author's case, empathizing with the concept of 'what the mind creates,' learned through studying the mind, greatly helped in not being swayed by emotions. When you think that feelings of joy and sadness are ultimately just one phenomenon of how your mind perceives things, you can feel a slight numbness in reacting to emotions. Word count: 946 characters.

We all know the lessons of Hoseodama, Jeonhwabigok, and Saeongjima. Good and bad events repeat in cycles, and often good things turn into bad, while bad things sometimes become great opportunities. Regardless of East or West, these phenomena always occur in human society, but when good or bad things happen, ordinary people tend to express their emotions fully.

Successful leaders are different. They know how to endure, or more precisely, they are trained to hold back from expressing their emotions. Some people with naturally sensitive temperaments grow into corporate leaders. Because they have a harder time controlling their emotions than ordinary people, they needed greater effort to manage their feelings both before and after becoming leaders.

One colleague I know was a sensitive person who always worried but became an executive through outstanding skills and achievements. The saying "people are not repaired but replaced" did not apply to him. After becoming an executive, he gradually found composure to the extent that I could feel his emotional fluctuations were no longer visible outwardly. His MBTI was a typical I, but those who had never seen his previous self might have thought he was an E because he became more sociable.

I believe this was the result of his effort and training. Knowing that controlling emotions and not being swayed by ups and downs are qualities required of executives, he worked hard and was ultimately able to change. I once casually asked him for his secret. Expecting something special for such a change, his answer was surprisingly simple. As he had more juniors to be responsible for, he felt he had to change, so although it was difficult, he tried. The urgent motivation that changed him was that while it was okay for him to suffer from his own mistakes, he could not bear to see his team members struggle because of it.

－Jeong Hae-seung, <Work Life is the Best Practice>, Hermon House, 17,000 KRW